Recently I drove to the beach to take pictures when the moon was nearly full. In places like Bradenton Beach there aren’t many lights so a bright moon will cast a shadow. It makes for an eerie light as though in a dream. When the moon is absent you cannot even see to the end of the pier.
Daily Image
The egret here stood at the end of the pier while I setup the tripod and captured this long exposure in the soft glow. He remained still during the exposure because he was watching for a fish below. It seems these birds have very good eyesight.
I take pictures at all times of day, but given a preference I’ll choose low light. The world takes on a different quality and things become more interesting. For instance I wonder what it would be like to go back in time and take picture before everything was so populated. However at night we get to see a little of what that might look like. There are fewer people out so there is an opportunity to experience crowded spaces without people. Perhaps a hundred years ago I would have seen the same thing.
long exposure photography
People in photos add a human element and we easily relate to that. Sometimes landscapes or seascapes without people work as well. Having said that there was a couple that walked on to this pier while I stood here taking pictures of the heron. It was just dark enough that they didn’t seem to notice what I was doing, so as soon as the heron flew away I took pictures of them as well. I’ll post that on another day as a different interpretation of the same scene.